Le Repos, (The Rest), Lithograph on Arches paper, 1968; Signed Marc Chagall in pencil, lower right and numbered 49/50 in pencil, lower left; Framed using two linen mats, an inset black wood interior fillet frame, a linen mat, a gold and black wood exterior frame and conservation clear UV protective glass. (Catalogue Raisonné: DAP 555)
Marc Chagall is one of those artists that the public is instantly attracted to and one that they truly adore. Chagall's style and imagery is instantly recognizable and even from far across the Gallery a patron will say with excitement, "Look a Chagall!" The compositions of Chagall are wonderfully balanced with forms accurately placed and both positive and negative space utilized; so that a work does not lose it's sense of control. Color is critical, with the choices made based on anticipated viewer appreciation and technically manipulated in order to activate a composition. Chagall's imagery is based on emotional interpretations rather than formal technical associations.
Marc Chagall (1887-1985) was born to a Jewish family in what was the Russian Empire, but which is now Belarus. As a Jewish artist in that time and place he had two choices in order to be a successful artist, one was to hide his Jewish heritage and the other was to embrace it; he chose the later. His move to Paris in 1910 afforded him the opportunity to visit museums and interact with Apollinaire, Delaunay, and Leger. Chagall travelled extensively through the years including, Europe, the Holy Land, and the US. He worked in a broad range of mediums from painting and print making, to stain glass and theatre set/costume design. Today he is regarded as one the century's greatest artists. Pablo Picasso said of him, "When Matisse dies, Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what color really is."
Marc Chagall (1887-1985) was born to a Jewish family in what was the Russian Empire, but which is now Belarus. As a Jewish artist in that time and place he had two choices in order to be a successful artist, one was to hide his Jewish heritage and the other was to embrace it; he chose the later. His move to Paris in 1910 afforded him the opportunity to visit museums and interact with Apollinaire, Delaunay, and Leger. Chagall travelled extensively through the years including, Europe, the Holy Land, and the US. He worked in a broad range of mediums from painting and print making, to stain glass and theatre set/costume design. Today he is regarded as one the century's greatest artists. Pablo Picasso said of him, "When Matisse dies, Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what color really is."
In the work above the sun, in the upper left, is white hot with a light top shading of yellow. The landscape background is created using a brilliant green that depicts vegetation with a bird centered between two hills. Just below is a body of blue water and the foreground is dominated by a beautiful brown haired woman dressed in deep red. Chagall loved the phrase that a man's head could be turned by a beautiful woman; and so here is what has happened to her beguiled male companion. There is negative space (unpainted) that runs throughout the composition, but it is balanced by the wonderful mossy green landscape throughout. Composition, balance, color, artistic control, line, and form all combine to make this a truly spectacular work!
"Le Repos, (The Rest)," Framed.
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